“Rotary Ethics” was the topic for Guest Speaker ADG Maurice Brooks at Monday’s Meeting 4th July.

The presentation was well received and thought provoking.

Speach by ADG PP Maurice Brooks to the Rotary Club of Belfast Club Meeting, Monday 4th July 2011

ROTARY CORE VALUES & ETHICS

Good Afternoon Everyone!

President Adrian thought it appropriate that we should start this Centenary Year and his year in office with this talk which DG Barney asked me to give at the PEPS training earlier in the year.

Picture the scene: 2 people discussing ethics
You know what the problem is?         No.   What?
There is only one time when people think about Ethics!         When is that?
When they get caught!!!

The subject of ETHICS is huge and varied so let us try to define what we mean by ETHICS.

ETHICS is also known as MORAL PHILISOPHY.   It’s a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality – that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and so on.  There are five main branches of Ethics and within each of these branches there are many different schools of thought and still further sub-fields of study.  It started with the Greeks, Socrates and Aristotle but nowadays more and more interpretations have emerged such as Christian Ethics, Buddhist ethics, Environmental ethics, Humanist ethics, Journalism ethics, Legal ethics, Medical ethics etc., etc.

Moral codes and ethics give us tools but also raise questions to be answered: How should we live?   What is morally good or bad, right or wrong? Shall we aim for happiness or knowledge?  If we choose happiness, will it be our own or the happiness of all?   

And what of more specific questions that face us?  Is it right to be dishonest for a good cause?   Can we justify living in opulence while elsewhere in the world people are starving?  Is going to war warranted in cases where innocent people will be likely to be killed?   

Ethics deals with such questions at all levels.  The subject’s core consists of fundamental issues of practical decision making, and its major concerns include the nature of ultimate value and the standards by which human actions can be judged right or wrong.

I guess we are all ethically compromised to a greater or lesser degree.  Do we impact on the environment when we drive our own cars instead of taking public transport?  Do we give enough aid to less privileged countries and peoples?   Do we insist on purchasing Fair Trade products?   Are we concerned about sweat shops and child labour when shopping?

For Rotary, the Four-Way Test is the cornerstone of all action.   

Of all the things we think, say or do

Is it the TRUTH?
Is it FAIR to all concerned?
Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

The Test is one of the hallmarks of Rotary.

We have all heard of Paul Harris and Arch Klumph but who can tell me who wrote the 4-Way Test?  It was conceived in 1932 by Herbert J. Taylor, a member of the Rotary Club of Chicago who went on to become President of Rotary International in 1954-55.  Having been assigned the task of saving a Company from bankruptcy, Herb Taylor developed the test as an ethical guide to follow in all business matters.  The Company’s survival was credited to this simple philosophy and you can actually hear Herb Taylor talking about it on the RI website www.rotary.org/rotarybasics. It has never ceased to be relevant. Its four brief questions are not based on culture or religion.  Rotarians may be from any number of shades of religious belief or none at all: Christians, Jews, Muslims agnostics, atheists.  Yet because Rotary is explicitly not a religious organisation we are all equally welcomed at each meeting.  The Four-Way Test unites us by asserting a set of ethical values that transcend religious beliefs, promote tolerance and avoid judgemental pronouncements.

Why is this so important?  Well in 1910 the Object of Rotary was formulated which is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise and, in particular, to encourage and foster: -

FIRST The development of acquaintance (or fellowship) as an opportunity for service;
SECOND High ethical standards in business and professions; the recognition of the worthiness of all useful occupations; and the dignifying of each Rotarian’s occupation as an opportunity to serve society;
THIRD The application of the ideal of service in each Rotarian’s personal, business and community life;
FOURTH The advancement of international understanding, goodwill and peace through a world fellowship of business and professional persons united in the ideal of service.

Part of the second objective is worth repeating in the context of the topic we are dealing with: -

High ethical standards in business and professions;

Of the 5 Avenues of Service it is Vocational Service which encourages Rotarians to serve others through their vocations and to practice high ethical standards.

How do we do this?

Rotarians can use their standing as business leaders and respected members of all professions to promote and advance high ethical standards by setting a positive example amongst employees, associates and the community in general.  All types of work-related interaction offer an opportunity to encourage ethical behaviour.  Here are a few specific ways that Rotarians can integrate ethics into their daily work life:

• In recruitment, training, and review procedures, include discussion and emphasis of honesty, accountability, fairness and respect.
•  In internal communications, praise and encourage exemplary behaviour both on and off the job.
•  In relations with customers, suppliers and business associates, communicate and demonstrate your personal commitment to high ethical standards.
•  Display the Four-Way Test in the community or workplace.

In 1989 the Council on Legislation adopted a Declaration of Rotarians in Businesses and Professions to more clearly define the high ethical standards called for in the Object of Rotary.  It has eight points and therefore is less easy to remember than the Four-Way Test. You’ll find it on the RI website www.rotary.org if you want to increase your knowledge.  I personally believe in the KISS theory – that is: keep it simple stupid!

Remember what the Rotary pin says to all who you meet.

It says: -  TRUST ME, I’M A ROTARIAN!

If Jackie Smith, the former Home Secretary, had applied the 4-Way Test to her expense claims would she have had to resign because her husband watched porn videos which she had asked the taxpayer to pay for?

If the whole area of Parliamentary expenses had had the 4-way test applied, would a scandal have occurred? In England we had the duck house and the house switching.  Nor was Ireland exempt, for we have our Ivor Callelly, who thinks it’s alright to claim for travelling from Cork, when living in Dublin!  And Jackie Healy Rae who is one of the best customers of Irish Rail and has the free travel pass yet claims the mileage from the mountains of Kerry!

If the 4-way test had been applied to the infamous dossier about the justification for the Invasion of Iraq, would the UK have participated in the war and indeed would it have taken place at all?

If Seanie Fitzpatrick or Michael (Fingers) Fingleton had applied the 4-way test to their dealings would they have wrecked Anglo Irish Bank and Irish Nationwide respectively and their shareholders value?  Does NOT breaking the the letter of the Law make an action alright?

Even now bank bonuses convey no sense of fairness or sharing.   Have the bankers lost their sense of community?  Just because everyone is doing it, does that make it right?  Earlier this year the CEO of HSBC was awarded a bonus of £5.2m!

The one universal, unsurpassed principle expressed by nearly every major religion and values system is similar to the Golden Rule: “Do to others as you would have them do to you”!

Today, it is especially confusing to determine what is really right and wrong. But the fundamentals of Rotary are bound to universal ethics and humanity without any boundaries between race, religion or ethnic background.

When I was in Chicago last April I attended a Rotary meeting of the Highland Park Rotary Club which is linked to the Rotary Club of Belfast.  At every meeting they join together to say the Four-Way Test.

So let’s say the 4-way test together: -
Of all the things we think, say or do
Is it the TRUTH?
Is it FAIR to all concerned?
Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

Thank you!